Sweet 16: Top Films of 2016

For the better part of a decade, this has become an annual tradition for yours truly.

From January to December I compile a list of the best, artistic and most progressive films, television shows, and music albums. One of the reasons I do this is to provide resources to readers who are looking for cerebral, fun, and progressive media. It does exist as my lists have continued to prove. Don’t say I never gave you anything. You’re welcome.

2016 was full of surprises. Many major releases I expected to rank highly didn’t even place while there were a number of 4th quarter and sleeper hits that truly blindsided me. I found myself reranking the list again and again and again.

This past year might arguably be my most competitive list yet and 2017 is already looking to match it or even surpass it.

But that’s not all. For the first time ever three short films were so impressive that they were ranked among on the main feature film list.

Published by Dennis R. Upkins

Speculative Fiction Novelist. Author of Hollowstone, West of Sunset and other cool stories.
Wordsmith, activist and nerd seraph. Saving the world and/or taking it over.
http://www.dennisupkins.wordpress.com
View all posts by Dennis R. Upkins

10 comments

here’s my list and yeah some you hated on here but i loved them lol. and i count hidden figures as a 2017 film since it went wide in january and thats when my theater had it, otherwise it would be on this list:

Personally, I saw this as a pretty bad year for films. On the other hand, my opinion may be considered to have little value as I’ve missed all but three of the films you listed above.
Thanks for the share.

Zootopia while cute failed in comparison to the other animated films. BvS beat Deadpool because it had a superior narrative and it also didn’t have to use gay bait & switch with its marketing. And I got a free special screening to GITS. I still want my refund for that fuckery.

i will fight to the death on Zootopia (best animated feature since Lion King!), but GITS is as bad as it looks huh? Yeah, it looked bad when it missed the point of Kusanagi by focusing on her fee fees and instead of all the clever imagery of the original saying… look , here’s some floating carp- that’s Japanese right? And some random Geisha bot. Do you have a review of that film up on the site?

I haven´t gone to the movies very often, it doesn´t feel like it did when I was child all excited to see a great feature. These days they´re relying too much on remakes, reboots of classic movies what´s that old saying…´´If it ain´t broke, don´t fix it.´´ I feel the best stories are being told on television because you have 10 maximum 23 episodes to develop characters.

Batman v Superman, I thought the movie was excellent it had great narrative in my opinion. Helped establish this new version of Batman. I liked that while Nolanverse Batman ´´died´´ a hero, this Batman lived long enough to become the villain, this film was his journey back to being a hero I felt they wrote superheroes realistically in that we live in a world that constantly tempts us to snap, Bruce snapped long ago and Clark was well on his way because humanity still mistrusts him despite saving the planet from his own people (even though Zod symbolically was the last vestige of a civilization whose own arrogance and stagnation caused its downfall and Clark is that new hope for Krypton to begin anew). I also liked how they treated the whole ´´life beyond our planet´´. Humanity would be very divided on the existence of alien life.

Can I say Damian Wayne happens to be the best little brat that has come along in animation recently, he even has the super power of cockblocking, I mean he prevented Dick from banging his hot alien girlfriend not once but twice and of course his douche father!

I also remember RDJ saying the superhero genre will eventually peak in popularity before declining of course we have at least ten more years of superhero movies which is awesome don´t get me wrong. Science fiction seems to be making a comeback. Can´t believe they delayed the new Star Trek tv series…AGAIN!

And I may add that I liked what they did with Gotham and Metropolis, I feel the setting is as or even more important than the characters themselves take example the Wire, easily one of the best dramas of recent times. In a sense Baltimore was the protagonist of the Wire. Cities real and fictional have their own uniqueness to them. They did something similar with B v S. They did a piece some years back on the symbolism of Gotham City. It´s neo gothic architecture, it´s tall and opaque skyscrapers, its derelict buildings, an embodiment of our fears of the dark, Batman is like the personification of the city he protects.
Meanwhile Metropolis is almost always depicted during the daytime with its tall and shiny skyscrapers and futuristic and art deco architecture the model city of tomorrow. In many instances in the comics Clark and Bruce protect the other´s respective city, Bruce even complains that his grappling hook is difficult to use in Metropolis´ glass skyscrapers.